Super Bowl Champs To Reunite At White House On Monday
DENVER (CBS4) - Excitement about the Denver Broncos trip to the White House was dampened on Sunday as news broke that Pro Bowl cornerback Aqib Talib was shot in the leg Saturday night at a Dallas nightclub.
The Broncos say Talib is okay and his injuries aren't considered life-threatening, but Talib is not expected to join his teammates when they meet President Barack Obama Monday afternoon. But the celebration will go on -- and the reunion as well.
The last time the Super Bowl team was all together was the parade and rally in downtown Denver.
Since then, Peyton Manning retired. He'll be back however.
Von Miller has been on a celebrity tour, but he'll stop by.
Players such as Malik Jackson bolted for more bucks, but he'll return. The only notable non-attendee (aside from Talib) is Brock Osweiler who is staying in Houston to practice with his new team.
It's a tradition that actually dates back more than 100 years. It might seem like a century since the Broncos last visited the president, but it was actually 1998 when they were fresh off their first Super Bowl victory when tey beat the Green Bay Packers. John Elway missed the trip so MVP Terrell Davis handled the jersey presentation to President Bill Clinton.
"It's been a long road for us coming here, but this is the one thing I thought about after we won the Super Bowl was coming to the White House and seeing the president, and we're here and it's all what we thought it would be and more," Davis said.
Former offensive lineman Mark Schlereth felt it was an honor to visit the White House and meet the president.
"When you walk into that environment it is pretty special. It's one of those bucket list things that not every American gets the opportunity to have," Schlereth said.
For the current Broncos, only one player has previously made the trip -- Peyton Manning. He was with the Indianapolis Colts after their Super Bowl win in 2007. Manning will be there to do it again, but for rest of his former teammates it's is a brand new experience, and one they will likely never forget.
"I'm looking forward to it. I've never been to Washington, D.C. I've never seen the White House in person. I've never met a president in person," linebacker Cory Nelson. "All the memories, everything that has to offer, I'm looking forward to it. I'm just ready to go there, accept it and take it all in."